Phoenix Reflections
by abbitha1108
Summary: This is a collection of missing moments between Ron and Hermione, set during Order of the Phoenix.
1. Chapter 1

~Reviews are always appreciated, especially since this is my first R/Hr fic!~

_**Ron**_

"Son," Dad said, poking his head into my room. "I'm going to leave to get Hermione in a minute."

"I'm coming," I said without thinking. Dad raised his eyebrows. "She's my friend, Dad. I want to make sure she gets here alright." That was the truth. I _do_ want to make sure she is okay. I feel the same way about Harry. Okay, maybe not the _exact_ same way, because I know Harry at least could take care of himself.

I haven't seen either of my best friends in two weeks. I wrote to both of them, but it just isn't the same as seeing them in person. Hermione is coming here to the Burrow, and then we're going somewhere else for the rest of summer. A safe house, my parents said. Fred, George, Ginny and I have all tried to get more information out of them, but they haven't said a word. '_Whatever is necessary for you four to know will be explained to you._' That was a joke. George said that he thinks we're going into hiding from You-Know-Who. I have a feeling he's right.

Now, my dad shook his head at me. "I'm sorry, Ron. There is no easy way for you to get there. The Floo network is being watched, and you can't Apparate yet. I'm going alone. Trust me, it will be a lot easier with fewer people to worry about." He must have noticed the worry on my face because he smiled at me. "I'll take care of her, Ron. Don't worry. I will make sure she gets here in one piece."

"I could take care of her just as well as you could," I mumbled as Dad went to say goodbye to Mum. I flopped down on my bed in defeat. When Ginny came into my room a few minutes later, she looked surprised to see me.

"What are you doing here?"

Has she gone mental? "This is my room, Gin." She sighed.

"I know, but I thought you would have gone with Dad to get Hermione. You've certainly been worrying about her an awful lot lately."

I felt anger flare up inside me. "You think I don't know that? You think I _like_ being stuck here, useless, wondering if Dad and Hermione are okay? Don't you think I would rather be there, helping her as much as I can?" I took a breath. "What are _you_ doing in here, anyways?"

Ginny crossed her arms and glared indignantly at me. "I came to borrow Pigwidgeon. I have a letter for him to send, and it's rather urgent." Normally, I wouldn't care about letting her use Pig, but I wasn't really in a generous mood at the moment.

"No, I don't think you will. Whoever it is you're writing to can just wait for their letter." Ginny just shook her head angrily.

"You know what Ron? I should Bat-Bogey the shit out of you, but I won't since you're obviously pining for Hermione."

I felt my ears turn bright red. I wanted to yell at her, what right did she have to draw conclusions about me? Instead, I just growled, "Watch your language when talking to me, Gin." She looked like she was about to retort when we heard Mum's happy voice float up from downstairs.

"Ronald, Ginny, dears! Come downstairs, Hermione's here!" I felt a smile fly onto my face as I shot up excitedly. Ginny put her hands on her hips and smirked.

"I knew it! Look who's all excited to see his girlfriend." I elbowed her as I made my way down the stairs to the kitchen. I still felt my ears burning from anger. Stupid Ginny and her stupid ideas. What does she know, anyway? Hermione was just my good friend, that's all. Of course I'm excited to see her, because she's a good friend. We're close. We're close, good friends.

I shook the thoughts from my head as I approached the kitchen. Dad came out, and when he saw me, said, "One piece, as promised." The smile he gave me was a tad too smug for my liking. It was as if Dad knew something I didn't. I tried to ignore the idea when I entered the small kitchen. She sat at the table talking to Mum, but stood when she saw me, smiling.

"All right, Hermione?" I walked towards her. I stopped when I reached her, suddenly unsure of what to do.

"Well enough, Ron, and you?" She started shifting her weight from foot to foot.

"Good," I answered simply. "I was a little worried about you, to be honest." I inwardly cringed when I heard that come out of my mouth. _Git! What were you thinking? She's going to think you're bloody pathetic!_

"Oh." She smiled a bit. "Well I'm here now, and I'm fine."

I smiled at her and nodded. I stood awkwardly, undecided on whether or not to pull her into a hug. _What's the matter with you? It's only Hermione!_ Thankfully, Mum's voice broke the moment. I had forgotten she was there. "Ronnie, why don't you take Hermione's trunk up to Ginny's room? We'll be leaving tomorrow afternoon, but it can stay there in the meantime. We don't need to lose it among the clutter of the house."

"Right! Er, I'll just do that, then." I backed up, and stumbled on the trunk. Hermione unsuccessfully tried to hide a chuckle. I felt my ears turning red again, only this time from embarrassment. Damn it! Why couldn't I do anything right all of a sudden? I picked up the trunk and turned to take it upstairs. That's when I saw Ginny standing in the doorway.

"You know, you're really lucky Fred and George didn't see that exchange." She was talking low so only I could hear. "I can practically hear them taking the piss out of you about your _girlfriend_." She smirked triumphantly.

"Piss off, Ginny." I tried to be as menacing as I could manage at the moment, but she only shrugged and entered the kitchen. I practically ran up the stairs to put the trunk away, ignoring Ginny's voice brightly welcoming Hermione. I flew into my room and slammed the door behind me, intending to stay there until dinner.


	2. Chapter 2

_**Hermione**_

"Hedwig!" I shouted as the Snowy Owl flew through the window of Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place. Sirius had just ran up the stairs to mine and Ginny's room and told us that Harry was attacked by dementors and is in trouble with the Ministry. He ran out before we could say a word.

Ginny had sat down where she was standing. "I hope Sirius told Fred and George about this." Her voice was shaky. "This is the most information we've heard all summer, and they will hate us if they miss it." She had attempted a smile, but could only get partway there. I sat down next to her.

"Ginny, Harry will be alright. Everything is going to be okay." I had tried to make my words as comforting as possible, and hoped that they were true. We sat like that until Hedwig had flown in.

She screeched at me, which was unusual for such a mellow bird. I reached up to stroke her, thinking that it would calm her down, and felt her sharp beak bite hard into my hand. I withdrew it with a gasp as she dropped a letter in front of me before flying out the door and down the hall. I inspected the marks Hedwig made on my hand. The cuts weren't bad; they were more like scratches. Still, I couldn't believe that Harry's beautiful, clever owl would attack me like that.

I looked at the front of the letter, and instantly recognized Harry's handwriting. The scrawl was even messier than usual, as if he had written it in a hurry. Ginny looked up as I opened it, a mixture of emotions on her face. I read the letter out loud to her.

"'I've just been attacked by dementors and I might be expelled from Hogwarts. I want to know what's going on and when I'm going to get out of here.'" Ginny and I looked at each other, got up and ran down the hall to Ron's room. "Ron! Harry's just sent-" I broke off as I noticed he was reading a letter too. He looked up and saw the parchment clutched in my hand.

"He sent one to you to, eh? Look what Hedwig did to me when I tried to calm her down." Ron showed us a nasty-looking cut on his index finger. He went over and sat on his bed. Ginny and I followed suit.

"What are we going to do, Ron? We can't possibly tell him the truth, Dumbledore made us promise we wouldn't and Harry is going to be so upset-"

"Hey." Ron cut me off. "We promised Dumbledore we wouldn't tell him, so we won't. Let's go tell Sirius. He's his godfather, he'll know what to do."

I suddenly felt very stupid. Why didn't I think of that? As if reading my mind, Ron smiled and shook his head at me. "You can never think properly when you get like this, Mione. Do I need to remind you of the Devil's Snare in our first year?" He made is voice high pitched and hysterical. "_'There's no wood!'_ Honestly, it was like you hadn't been at a magical school for months."

I smacked him on the arm. "Shut up Ron!" Ginny scooted closer and said, "No, go on, I want to hear this story!" Ron opened his mouth, a grin on his face, when I cut him off.

"No! It's not important now. Let's just go find Sirius." I grabbed Ginny's arm with my free hand and pulled her out of the room, with Ron following right behind us.

We found him in the kitchen with various members of the Order. I had been hesitant about barging in unannounced, but the Order should know about the letters anyways, shouldn't they? I hesitated, and Ron pushed open the door instead. It looked like they were planning something, but stopped talking as soon as they saw us. Mrs. Weasley bustled over to stand in front of us, trying in vain to block out the impromptu meeting behind her.

"What do you three need?" she asked, looking at us suspiciously.

"We, um, came to talk to Sirius," I stammered. "Harry's just sent us letters and-"

Sirius cut me off. "Ah, yes, you too? He's sent me one as well. We were just discussing what to do about it. Let them sit down, Molly, this isn't so important that they can't hear it." Mrs. Weasley looked behind her shoulder at him, sighed and walked back to Mr. Weasley, who put his arms around her.

Ron, Ginny, and I approached the table slowly, while Tonks and Lupin made a space for us between them. Sirius waited until we were settled before explaining to us what was happening.

"We decided that select Order members will go get Harry from his aunt's and uncle's. Mad-Eye is currently planning out exactly how we will go about doing that." He had emphasized 'Order members' to clearly prove that we were not invited to go along. I looked over at the others, and saw Ginny's face was expressionless, while Ron looked annoyed.

Sirius must have caught it too. "I know it's hard for you to not know what will happen to Harry, but if it makes you feel any better, I will be stuck here too." He tried to hide his bitterness behind a smile, but it didn't fool anyone. I smiled at him sympathetically. It must be as hard for him to not know as it is for us, possibly more so.

Tonks nudged Ginny, who was sitting next to her, and said, "I can't wait to meet the kid. Especially after everything he's done! It's brilliant!"

Lupin smiled and said, "Don't get too excited, Tonks, or Alastor may not let you go."

Tonks was about to say something when the twins Apparated suddenly into the kitchen. Fred glared around the table and said, "What's going on? Why weren't we invited to this meeting?" George picked up the rest of the sentence.

"It's obvious that this isn't '_classified information that non-Order members aren't required to know_' since Ron, Hermione and Ginny all get to be here," He said, using one of Moody's prior phrases. Their ears were both red, always a Weasley warning sign.

"Well _maybe_, if you two would give anyone a chance to talk, someone would tell you what's going on!" The sudden outburst from Mrs. Weasley made me jump. Ron noticed this and patted my shoulder. I blushed, he probably thought I was just a scaredy-cat. Mrs. Weasley was glaring at the twins and pointed to a couple of conjured chairs at the table. Fred and George bowed their heads and sat down, while Lupin this time told them the plan.

"Ron, you know I love your family, including your Mum, but don't you think she was, well, overreacting?" I was whispering, hoping no one noticed our conversation. Ron hadn't removed his hand from my shoulder.

"Don't worry about them, Mione. Mum's still mad about their joke shop, and takes her anger out on them as much as possible. The Extendable Ears kind of put her over the edge." He smiled, and I giggled a little.

I had momentarily forgot that our friend was in danger, with the possibility of being expelled. I didn't care that we were on the brink of a war. I was too busy enjoying this moment at Grimmauld Place, with Ron, the twins, and normal family problems. Well, as normal as it can get for wizards and witches, anyways.


	3. Chapter 3

_**Hermione**_

I've decided I hate doxies. I know I really shouldn't, I mean they _are_ magical creatures, just like a house elf or unicorn. But at least those are good for something! Honestly, doxies are just nuisances. But at the same time, I have the doxies to thank for one of my favorite moments of the summer.

I knew Mrs. Weasley was biting off more than she could chew when she decided to completely clean Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place. That's why I didn't say anything when she told Ginny and I we were to help her de-doxy the drawing room; she needed the help. I tied a towel around my face and took a bottle of Doxycide while I waited for Ron and Harry to join us.

I was thinking a lot about what the Order told us the previous night. Every word they mentioned about guard duty stuck in my mind. And the idea of another weapon, worse than anything they already have?

I was so busy thinking on what this weapon could be, I was only vaguely aware of the struggles going on around me. I didn't even notice when a large doxy was flying toward me until it was about to bite my nose. I jumped back as quick as I could, but the paralyzed doxy was already on the floor. I looked around, surprised, and saw Ron lowering his spray bottle. He looked at me for a moment before grabbing my arm and pulling me a little ways away.

"What?" I asked him, lowering my towel. He also took off his cloth and gave me a funny look.

"Are you alright, Hermione? You almost let that doxy bite you. You didn't even look like you were here with us."

I sighed. "I was just so preoccupied thinking about what the Order told us last night. It was so much to take in, I don't even think I remember the whole conversation."

Ron smiled at me. "Please, Hermione, you probably remembered it word for word. We are all thinking about that, especially the part about the weapon. I keep wondering what it could be? Of course, my guesses are probably nothing compared to what you're brain has come up with." I laughed.

"Oh, you'd be surprised the ridiculous things I have thought of." We settled into a short silence. "Anyways, Ron, thanks for, um, well you know," But he cut me off.

"It was nothing, Mione. I didn't want you to have to suffer Mum's wrath of wasting her Doxy antidote on something as trivial as actually getting _bitten_ by a Doxy."

I laughed some more, before a sharp voice cut into our moment. "Ronald! Hermione! If you two don't mind, I would prefer to get this done sometime today." It was Mrs. Weasley. "Be right there!" I called. I looked at Ron one last time before retying my tea towel and joining the others, this time paying more attention to what I was doing.

~*~*~

Ron

I hate this stupid place! It's bad enough just keeping the Burrow clean, but Mum just _had_ to volunteer us to clean the stupid headquarters, too! I hardly get to rest after one thing before we're forced along to the other. The only consolation is that Harry and Hermione are here to help me.

I was relieved when Mundungus distracted Mum for a while, but then Kreacher had to come in. I remembered that Harry had never met the house elf when Hermione tried to introduce them.

"This is Harry, Kreacher," she said. Always trying to be the do-gooder, even for smelly old house elves that would be better off dead. I started to shake my head when Kreacher muttered a reply.

"The Mudblood is talking to Kreacher as though she is my friend, if Kreacher's Mistress saw him in such company, oh what would she say – " I was suddenly furious.

"Don't call her a Mudblood!" I yelled, only mine wasn't the only voice I heard. It seems Ginny finally had enough of that stupid house elf too. Serves him right, how dare he say that word, and to Hermione too, as if she wasn't there!

Oh, now Hermione is trying to defend him. That's just like her, won't condemn a poor house elf, no of course not. Not her and her precious _spew_. Well, I never signed up to love that filthy thing. There was no way Hermione is ever going to get me to join the Elf Lover League. I came out of my thoughts to hear that _thing_ saying that he was cleaning.

"A likely story." The voice came from behind me. I turned around and saw Sirius standing there looking at Kreacher with pure dislike. I suddenly felt a surge of happiness to see him. "Stand up straight," he commanded. "Now what are you up to?"

"Kreacher is cleaning. Kreacher lives to serve the noble house of Black –"

"And it's getting blacker every day, it's filthy," Sirius said, cutting him off.

As the conversation went on, I saw Hermione looking more and more scandalized. Honestly, what does she see in that thing? Wait, did Sirius just say he was going to murder Kreacher? Wouldn't that do us all a favor. And Hermione is still defending him! I don't even blame Sirius for walking out on her. She turned and looked at me.

"Can you believe the way Sirius treats poor Kreacher? It's worse than how Crouch treated Winky! He knows Kreacher isn't all right, but he is just cruel to him anyways!"

"Hermione," Fred interrupted her. "How can you say anything for the elf's sake? He called you a Mudblood without a second thought towards it!" Just what I was thinking.

"But it's not _his_ fault," Hermione insisted. "He was born and raised in this pure-blood house, and just picked up the language –"

"And the beliefs. Don't try to convince yourself you can help such a bitter creature. Even his _name _suggests that he's not fit to interact with us!" Hermione started walking out halfway through Ginny's sentence and slammed the door behind her. I looked at the others for a second before following.

I found her in the next room, staring angrily out the window. When she saw me standing at the doorway, she motioned for me to come in. We sat for a minute before she spoke. "I just can't understand why you all have to be so prejudice against him."

"Hermione, don't you understand? We were standing up for _you_. We yelled at Kreacher for _your_ sake." I gave her an exasperated look. "We all care about you far too much to let _anyone_, much less a house elf, insult you in front of us."

She looked at me as the words sunk in. "Really, Ron?" I nodded. "That's sweet of you, all of you." She smiled, before looking angry again. "That still doesn't mean you should be cruel to innocent house elves!"

Her and I glared at each other until I couldn't take it anymore, and started to laugh. She soon followed suit until we could barely breathe.


	4. Chapter 4

_**Ron**_

It was the last day of the summer holiday. The booklists finally came, and it took them long enough to send it, didn't it? Why not just wait until after school started, really? I was reading through my booklist when Harry entered our bedroom.

I grabbed his letter and tossed it to him. "Booklists have arrived. About time, I thought they'd forgotten, they usually come much earlier than this…" I put down my booklist and pulled out the letter, but froze when something shiny caught my eye in my envelope. I looked closer, and saw the Gryffindor colors shining on a small badge. My breath caught in my throat, and I felt my mouth fall open. I opened the letter and scanned it.

It couldn't be. This _has_ to be some kind of mistake! My letter claimed that I have been made prefect. _I _was a Gryffindor _prefect_??? This had to be a mix-up, of course the badge was meant for Harry, the one who actually _deserved_ it. But, no, the letter had 'Ronald Weasley' at the top, and 'congratulations, you have been made a prefect' at the bottom. Unless it was a joke? Somehow, I don't think McGonagall is prone to jokes, much less ones played on her students.

I was only vaguely aware that Fred and George had Apparated into the room and were talking to Harry. That is, until Fred grabbed the letter from my hand.

"There's been a mistake," he said as he held the letter up to the light. "No one in their right mind would make Ron a prefect…" I looked over at George, who was examining the badge, and felt a surge of anger. So I wasn't good enough to be a prefect? But then, wasn't I just thinking the same thing anyways? The twins were talking to Harry now.

"We thought you were a cert!" Fred sounded scandalized.

So did George. "We thought Dumbledore was _bound_ to pick you!" They went on for another minute or so.

I was still feeling numb when George practically threw the badge, _(my badge?)_, at me. I could still hardly believe it, and turned it over to Harry, convinced it was meant for him. I crashed back to Earth as the door slammed open and Hermione ran in.

"Did you – did you get – ?" She shrieked when she spotted the badge in Harry's hand. "I knew it! Me too, Harry, me too!" She looked excited. And why shouldn't she be? She's probably been dreaming about this since she first heard about it.

Harry handed the badge back to me. "No. It's Ron, not me."

"It – what?" Hermione looked confused, something rarely seen.

"Ron's prefect, not me."

"_Ron?_" She turned to look at me, shocked, I presumed. "But… are you sure? I mean –" That's when I really got angry. Of course, _perfect_ Hermione wanted to share the honor of prefect with _perfect_ Harry. Why should the oafish sidekick get it instead? But I did.

"It's my name on the letter," I told her. Let's see what she makes of that!

She started stuttering. "I…. I… well… wow! Well done, Ron! That's really –" "Unexpected," George cut in. She shook her head. "No, no, it's not… Ron's done loads of… he's really…" She stopped as Mum came in with laundry.

I listened anxiously as Fred and George told Mum about me becoming a prefect. I showed her the badge when she looked up, and she screamed. What is it with girls screaming when they're excited? Hermione did the same thing! Wait, I'm mad at her right now, aren't I? Now Mum is going on a rant about how excited she is. I wish she would stop hugging and kissing me in front of everybody! I tried to push her away.

"Well, what will it be?" she asked as she let go. "We gave Percy an owl, but you've already got one, of course." Huh? What did she mean? She smiled when I voiced these questions. "You've got to have a reward for this! How about a nice new set of dress robes?"

"We've already bought him some," Fred sounded upset at the fact that he did so. But as Mum babbled, I had an idea.

"Mum, can I have a new broom?" I know they're expensive, but she _did_ say I deserved a reward! "Not a really good one! Just – just a new one for a change," I added quickly. I'm not looking for a Firebolt, or anything! My heart leapt as she smiled.

"Of _course_ you can…. Well, I'd better get going if I've got a broom to buy too. I'll see you all later…. Little Ronnie, a prefect! And don't forget to pack your trunks…. A prefect… Oh, I'm all of a dither!" I grimaced as she kissed me again before leaving the room.

"You don't mind if we don't kiss you, do you, Ron?" Fred was mocking, of course. "We could curtsy, if you like," added George. I scowled.

"Oh, shut up."

They smirked. "Or what?" said Fred. "Going to put us in detention?"

"I'd love to see him try," George chimed in.

"He could if you don't watch out!" Hermione burst out. Who is she to be so self-righteous? She was just as shocked as anyone a few minutes ago! I told her to drop it, and the twins had a final laugh before they Disapparated. I sighed, I thought they'd never leave.

Hermione kept going, though. "Those two! Don't pay any attention to them, Ron, they're only jealous!" It was a nice thought, but I knew it wasn't true. And when did she decide to defend me? It was obvious she would much rather have Harry as prefect! I pushed away the thought.

"I don't think they are," I told her. "They've always said only prats become prefects…. Still, they've never had new brooms! I wish I could go with Mum and choose. She'll never be able to afford a Nimbus, but there's the new Cleansweep out, that'd be great. Yeah, I think I'll go and tell her I like the Cleansweep just so she knows…." I felt lighter than air as I ran to catch Mum before she left for Diagon Alley. I was a prefect! I'm not as worthless as I thought! And I get a new broom out of it!

**_Hermione_**

Ginny had told me our school letters finally came today. It's about time, too. I was getting worried that they had forgotten us. But then I thought that was ridiculous, aren't we seeing half of our teachers, including our Headmaster, on a regular basis here at Grimmauld Place? Of course they wouldn't forget us! But I was glad they finally sent the letters, anyway.

I scanned the booklist all fifth years would need this year. I nodded as I read '_Defensive Magical Theory_' by Wilbert Slinkhard. Good, that means we have a new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. Hogwarts hasn't had a very good track record with this subject, but I couldn't tell you why. Just don't tell anyone that.

As I pulled out my letter, something fell out of my envelope. It was a badge, with the Gryffindor colors and a small 'P' on it. I felt a shock go through me as I read my letter. Prefect! I had been made Gryffindor prefect! I've been dreaming about this since I met Ron's brother, Percy, in my first year. It was such an honor! I could hardly breathe.

Suddenly, I realized Harry must have gotten his badge, too! This was so exciting! Harry and I were going to be the new prefects of Gryffindor! I'm glad I could share something with one of my best friends besides the latest Quidditch scores. That was Harry's, Ron's and sometimes Ginny's thing. I just don't get it, I guess. I shook the thought from my head, and ran to Harry's and Ron's room.

"Did you – did you get – ?" I shrieked as I saw the red and gold badge he held. "I knew it! Me too, Harry, me too!" I showed him my letter excitedly. But then Harry shoved his badge into Ron's hand.

"No," he said. "It's Ron, not me."

_Ron?_ "It – what?" I didn't get it. Even when Harry said that Ron was prefect, not him, I couldn't comprehend. Sure, Ron was great, but I never would have expected the teachers to think he was _prefect_ material. And I guess it showed, because I blushed as I caught the look on Ron's face.

"It's my name on the letter." Oh, he sounded upset. I shouldn't have acted so surprised. But it _was_ rather unexpected. I felt horrible, however, when George said it aloud.

"No," I said quickly, "no, it's not… Ron's done loads of… he's really…" Thankfully, I was cut off by the arrival of Mrs. Weasley. I tuned out most of the conversation to think about this revelation.

Ron. Ronald Bilius Weasley, the one who could care less about authority or his grades, is a prefect, just like me. I'm thrilled for him, of course, but I'm still slightly confused. If it wasn't his tolerance for rules, and it definitely was _not_ his grades, then what was it that qualified him for prefect?

I suppose grades aren't _the_ most important factor for prefect. There are other things too, like personality. Well, Ron had quite a temper. I almost laughed at that thought, because no one knew better than me how bad his temper really was. Besides that, though, Ron had many wonderful qualities. He is funny, thoughtful, kind-hearted (although he doesn't show it much), genuine, and has the most gorgeous eyes I have ever seen. Wait, what? What do his eyes have to do with _anything_? Get a grip, Hermione!

I came back to reality to hear the Fred and George teasing Ron again. I was suddenly _very _annoyed with their bullying. I heard the tail end of Fred's sentence.

"- put us in detention?" He was smirking while George laughed, "I'd love to see him try."

"He could if you don't watch out!" There, that will show them how important their brother is now. But, no, Ron just told me to drop it. Why isn't he defending himself? Oh, that's right, because he's Ron, and he can't stand up to his brothers.

Still, I'm very happy that one of my best friends and I are both prefects. I felt a little bad for Harry, who was looking glum, but I couldn't find it in myself to be upset with him. Ron and I are Gryffindor prefects! This year was going to be great!


	5. Chapter 5

**_Hermione_**

I couldn't believe this was happening our first day back.

Of course, the new Ministry-assigned Defense teacher wasn't the highlight of the evening. However, I had just remembered something far more important.

"Ron, we're supposed to show the first years where to go!" I shouted. My first few hours of being a prefect, and I had forgotten one of the most pressing matters. Could prefects be fired? At least Ron looked like he had forgotten, too. It would have been unbearable if he looked like the responsible one.

"Oh yeah. Hey!" He called. "Hey you lot! Midgets!"

"_Ron_!" I could not believe he said that to the poor, innocent eleven-year-olds. Although I had to admit, they were a bit on the small side.

"Well, they are, they're titchy…"

"I know, but you can't call them midgets…. First years!" I hoped I sounded like someone the new Gryffindors would listen to. "This way, please!" Well, I seemed to have gotten their attention, at any rate. There was a group of students that got up and followed Ron and I to the doors of the Great Hall.

Harry looked sullen as he said goodbye to us, but I didn't really have the patience to listen to his problems at the moment. Ron was mumbling as he looked back at the first years.

"Look how _slow_ they're going…. You'd think that Gryffindors would have a little more confidence, even if they're new. I bet the new Slytherins are right at home in their cozy dungeons… probably wasted no time in getting there, either…."

"Yes, Ron, because I remember how brave you were your first night, sitting under the Sorting Hat," I snapped at him. Really, who was he to judge? He has to remember how it felt to be at the huge school for the first time, at least he had experience through his brothers' stories. _Some_ of us knew only what we'd researched. And Harry had known nothing at all!

"Follow me, first years!" I called behind me to make sure they were keeping up. They were there, all right. Some of them were giving Ron and I odd looks. One boy, who had pale skin and curly brown hair, looked like he wanted to say something. He didn't, though, so I turned back around.

Suddenly, Ron stopped. "Hermione, wait!" I skidded to a halt. What was wrong? Ron spoke up again. "Is this really the easiest route we should be showing them to get to the common room? I'm sure they would appreciate not having to make so many turns and maybe get lost." Was he kidding? Of course this was the simplest route!'

"This is the main way, Ron, so they can have an idea of how to get to their classrooms and back. None of the other paths are as practical to show them their first night."

"But, Mione, don't you think they should learn the other directions, too?" Was Ron really arguing about this? In front of the newest members of our House? Why?

I shook my head. "No, Ron, they can explore the castle in their free time, just like you and Harry and I did. It's not imperative that we give them a grand tour right now. It's late, and I'm sure they would just like to get to bed."

"But I –" Ron was about to respond when he was interrupted.

"Are you two dating or something?" The voice came from behind us. I whipped around and saw the curly brunette, looking curious, while other first years around him laughed. Ron started coughing, his ears bright red. I stumbled over my words to answer.

"What do you – why does it… I – I really don't think that has to do with anything!" I tried to finish with dignity, to show the boy who was in higher power here.

The boy looked frightened, as if I'd grown another head. "Okay, but I was only saying because you sound just like my parents. They've been together since they were about your age, too, I think..." His voice trailed off and I turned around, ignoring him.

"All right, everyone settle down. We are almost there…" Ron regained his breath as we reached the common room. We directed the students where to go for their dormitories, then watched as they trooped up the stairs. Ron looked at me.

"That could have gone better, couldn't it?" I nodded, still looking at the stairs where the first years disappeared. "I'm sorry for, you know, arguing with you. I should have known better than to doubt your ideas."

I saw the sheepish look on his face and grinned. "It's okay. Now that I think about it, it's rather amusing. Those kids must think we're crazy!" He laughed.

"I know! Can you believe that one brat actually thought we were dating?" We laughed, a little awkwardly, then stood there facing each other. I don't know how long we stayed like that before I finally broke the silence.

"Well, um, I should probably get to bed." Ron made a motion like he was snapping back to reality.

"Uh, yeah, right," he said, clearing his throat. "It will be great to see Seamus and Dean again. It will be nice to go catch up with them and escape the craziness with the midgets – er, first years," he corrected, catching my look. "Good night then."

I smiled. "Good night, Ron." I watched him walk to his stairs before I started off to my own dormitory. I suddenly felt like I could use a good night's sleep.


	6. Chapter 6

**_Hermione_**

_Good, _I thought, as I glanced around and saw Harry and Ron at a table not too far away, working on homework. It was about time, too, they were getting terribly behind. I exchanged goodnights with Ginny as she wandered up to bed, looking beaten. I looked at the clock; it was nearly midnight! _I may as well go check on the boys. They probably don't know _what_ they're doing!_

As I approached, I asked, "Nearly done?" to which Ron rudely snapped "No." I skimmed over his essay for Astronomy, already noticing mistakes. "Jupiter's biggest moon is Ganymede, not Callisto, and it's Io that's got the volcanoes." I knew they needed my help, they just couldn't retain detail as well as I could.

"Thanks." Ron sounded far from grateful, even hostile. I realized he was probably testy from doing so much homework this late at night. I _told_ him and Harry to start it ages ago, but do they bother listening? Of course not. However, I started to apologize when I saw a familiar owl outside the window, and broke off my sentence.

"Ron –" I tried to get his attention, but, as usual, he just started to rant about my 'sermons'. I interrupted him. "No – look!" I was surprised as I suddenly recognized the owl. "Isn't that Hermes?" Why would Percy be trying to contact _Ron_, of all people? He won't even acknowledge his own parents!

Ron sat back down after retrieving the letter and stared at the scroll. "Open it!" I encouraged him, Harry nodding at my side. As Ron did so and started reading, an ugly expression formed on his face. It was a mix of outrage and disgust, but what could Percy have written that was so bad? When Ron threw the letter at Harry and I, we read it as quickly as we could.

By the time I finished it I was in shock. How dare Percy? How _dare _he say that Harry was 'unbalanced', and how it could be 'damaging to Ron's future'? How _dare_ he suggest that Dumbledore wasn't one hundred percent the great wizard we all knew him to be, and that the Ministry could overpower him? And how _dare_ he claim that his parents were 'mixed up with the dangerous crowd' while he 'escaped the stigma of association with such people'? He actually thought he was justified in his words! I was disgusted.

I was vaguely aware of Harry handing the letter back to Ron, and came back to my senses to watch Ron rip the letter into tiny pieces. "He is the world's biggest git," he said with each tear before throwing the letter into the fire. "Come on," he said to Harry, "we've got to get this finished some time before dawn." I was suddenly overwhelmed by a surge of adoration for the tall, red-haired boy standing before me. He was truly a Gryffindor, through and through. I felt compelled to do whatever I could for him in that moment, starting with his essay.

"Oh, give them here," I said.

"What?"

"Give them to me," I repeated. "I'll look through them and correct them." Ron gaped at me.

"Are you serious? Ah, Hermione, you're a lifesaver. What can I –?" I cut him off.

"What you can say is, 'We promise we'll never leave our homework this late again'." I tried to look stern, but who was I kidding? I loved these two boys and would do anything for them.

"Thanks a million, Hermione," Harry said as he handed me his essay. He sounded exhausted, as I'm sure they both were.

We sat in silence for a good while as I corrected the essays. Naturally, Ron's needed more help than Harry's, so I worked on his first. I even wrote his conclusion for him, because he deserved it. I would probably regret finishing his homework for him later, but now I couldn't find it in me to care.

"Okay, write that down," I told Ron, handing back his essay, "and then copy out this conclusion that I've written for you."

His face brightened. "Hermione, you are honestly the most wonderful person I've ever met, and if I'm ever rude to you again –"

"–I'll know you're back to normal," I finished for him, but felt myself blush. I was immediately glad for the dimness of the common room. I didn't know why his compliment affected me like that. It was only to be expected after the help I just gave them, and it's not like they haven't said things like that to me before. I quickly recovered and turned to Harry, hoping to distract myself by going over his essay with him.


	7. Chapter 7

**_Ron_**

"I was wondering whether you'd thought any more about Defense Against the Dark Arts, Harry."

And she was off. Once Hermione got started on something, she would rather face a boggart than just let it drop. Like now, she was going to pester Harry about her secret Defense group. It was like _spew_, only this could actually be useful.

"'Course I have. Can't forget it, can we, with that hag teaching us –" Harry didn't sound too happy, but who could blame him, really?

"I meant the idea Ron and I had," I threw Hermione a look as she said this. There was no way she was bringing me into this! "Oh, all right, the idea _I_ had, then – about you teaching us." That was better. It was best if I wasn't mentioned with this plan, especially because it was all Hermione's idea! Sure, I went along with it, and I might have even agreed that it was a good plan. But, the important thing is, _it was not my idea_.

"Well, yeah, I – I've thought about it a bit."

"And?" Hermione looked too excited. But then, Harry didn't look upset, so maybe that was why.

"I dunno," Harry replied. He looked at me, as if expecting me to say something.

"I thought it was a good idea from the start," I declared. Hey, I'm allowed to change my mind, right? Besides, he looked like he was going to give in to the idea. Who am I to stop him?

"You did listen to what I said about a load of it being luck, didn't you?" But it would take more than that to derail Hermione.

"Yes, Harry, but all the same, there's no point pretending that you're not good at Defense Against the Dark Arts, because you are." She smiled at him slightly. "You were the only person last year who could throw off the Imperius Curse completely, you can produce a Patronus…" and this is where I stop listening. We all know how great Harry is. "Viktor always said –" Wait, what?

"Yeah? What did Vicky say?" Like anything that git has to say is important. And no one cares what wise words he spouted off to Hermione when he was around her all the time.

"Ho ho," Hermione rolled her eyes at me. "He said Harry knew how to do stuff even he didn't, and he was in the final year at Durmstrang." Well, obviously, that's because he's an idiot! The only reason people like him is because he's famous! I doubt there's even an ounce of brains under his thick skull. When did he tell Hermione all this, anyways?

"You're not still in contact with him, are you?" I really hoped not. Not that I care who Hermione talks to, I just don't like _Vicky_, that's all.

Hermione gave me a cold look, but I really didn't care. I needed to know the truth. "So what if I am? I can have a pen pal if I –"

"He didn't only want to be your pen pal," I accused her. No, he wanted Hermione to visit him, probably stay at his house. I shuddered as my traitorous imagination flashed different mental images of what could have happened if Hermione went.

Bloody Krum! He thinks he is so great, a big Quidditch star and a Triwizard Champion to boot! He could probably get any girl he wants, but why does he have to be interested in my Hermione? I mean, my _friend_ Hermione! Vicky doesn't care that she's smart, clever, funny, or pretty. He's probably hoping that she's _easy_. But she isn't the type of girl that will just fall into bed with anyone who tells her pretty words. A guy has to make her fall in love with him, and prove his love for her, like –

I came back to earth when I heard 'Voldemort' and winced as I remembered we were discussing an important matter. Well, Hermione and Harry were, anyways.

" – interested in hearing what you've got to say," Hermione was saying. I leaned in, frowning as I remembered my recent thoughts. "Look, you know the first weekend in October's a Hogsmeade weekend? How would it be if we tell anyone who's interested to meet us in the village and we can talk it over?"

Trying to act like I've been paying attention, I asked, "Why do we have to do it outside school?"

"Because I don't think Umbridge would be very happy if she found out what we were up to." Hermione always thinks of everything.

I was suddenly kind of nervous about our plan, but I knew that we would work it out. As long as Harry and Hermione are with me, I have nothing to worry about. Except bloody _Vicky_.


	8. Chapter 8

_**Ron**_

"I must've been mental to do this. _Mental_." It was my first Quidditch match, and against bloody Slytherin, no less! I felt like I was going to be sick.

"Don't be thick. You're going to be fine. It's normal to be nervous." Harry told me, always the best friend. Well he bloody won't want to be once he realizes what a lousy Keeper I am.

"I'm rubbish," I started voicing the thoughts I've had all morning. "I'm lousy. I can't play to save my life. What was I thinking?" I tried eating my cereal, but it refused to go down easily. I knew there was something seriously wrong when food and I didn't get along. That only used to happen when I was violently ill, and even then I would try my best to force food down my throat.

"Get a grip," Harry's voice took on a tone eerily similar to when Hermione tells me to take my own notes instead of using hers. "Look at that save you made with your foot the other day, even Fred and George said it was brilliant –"

I nearly choked on my cereal and turned towards Harry. "That was an accident. I didn't mean to do it – I slipped off my broom when none of you were looking and I was trying to get back on and I kicked the Quaffle by accident." I was miserable. What was Angelina playing at, letting me on the team?

"Well, a few more accidents like that and the game's in the bag, isn't it?" Even though I saw the shock in his face, Harry attempted to sound optimistic. I stared into the leftover milk in my bowl, wishing they would open up some sort of portal and transport me to another dimension.

I was so busy thinking of ways to get out of playing, I didn't even notice the girls had joined us until Ginny asked how I was feeling. How was I _feeling_? Like I should drop off the face of the earth.

I retreated into my mind, staying only vaguely aware of what was going on around me. I looked up when I heard Hermione's voice and saw her proudly wearing the House colors. I looked down again, thinking she might want to change when she saw how horrible I was, and then was interrupted by the bizarre idea that she looked so good in red and gold, why would she possibly want to change to green and silver? Our house colors suited her warm complexion so much better.

"… good luck, Ronald!" I was startled by hearing my name, and looked up quickly to see Luna Lovegood walking away with a huge lion's head on top of her own. I barely had time to wonder what the bloody hell she was up to when Angelina came over and reminded me I was about to meet my doom.

I saw Harry, Hermione, and Ginny all looking at me with concern, expecting me to eat something, anything. But how could I _possibly_ eat when I felt I was going to puke up everything I've ever eaten from the past year?

When it was time to go, Hermione pulled Harry over and whispered something to him, before quickly coming back. She smiled up at me as I met her eyes for the first time that morning.

"Good luck, Ron," she told me, then did something I wasn't used to and kissed me on the cheek. I felt warmth where her lips had touched before it spread outwards to the rest of my body, and suddenly I felt a little better, a little more confident.

Sure, I still expected to do bloody awful in the match today, but it just didn't seem as much like the end of the world as it did ten minutes before. Thinking about how Hermione's lips felt, I knew I would survive this match, one way or another.

* * *

_This was one of my favorite scenes to write. Let me know what you think!_


	9. Chapter 9

**_Ron_**

"Well?" I asked Harry, eager for details. "How was it?" He had just come back from our last D.A. meeting before Christmas, and he revealed that he and Cho kissed. Well, actually, Hermione revealed it, but either way Harry's going to have a happy Christmas.

"Wet," Harry finally answered me. I made a noise. What the hell is 'wet' supposed to mean? But Harry wasn't finished. "Because she was crying." I looked at him, slightly confused.

"Oh. Are you that bad at kissing?"

Harry looked upset. "Dunno. Maybe I am." I was about to respond with something comforting and best friend-worthy, when Hermione broke in.

"Of course you're not." What!? And how the bloody hell would _Hermione_, of all people, know how good of a kisser Harry was?

When I voiced this question, in slightly better words, Hermione just said, "Because Cho spends half her time crying these days. She does it at mealtimes, in the loos, all over the place."

I felt relief wash through me and grinned. "You'd think a bit of kissing would cheer her up."

"Ron, you are the most insensitive wart I have ever had the misfortune to meet." I turned sharply to Hermione.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked her. "What sort of person cries while someone's kissing them?" I thought about it while Harry echoed my question. Hermione gave us a look.

"Well," she started to explain, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. I listened vaguely as she went on about Cho's problems, which, incidentally, were a lot. I still think kissing would have cheered her up just a _little_.

When Hermione finally finished her list, I looked at her. "One person can't feel all that at once, they'd explode." I know _I_ certainly would. She just glared.

"Just because you've got the emotional range of a teaspoon doesn't mean we all have." Ouch. That was unnecessary. I was suddenly angry. Like I'm supposed to understand anything that girls do, anyways! Why don't they just come with manuals, or something?

Harry, however, still seemed a little dazed. "She was the one who started it. I wouldn't've – she just sort of came at me – and next thing she's crying all over me – I didn't know what to do –"

"Don't blame you, mate," I told him, nodding. I faded out of the conversation a little, caught up in the frightening thought of being stuck in the nightmare of dealing with a crying girl. When I snapped back, Hermione was trying to convince Harry to ask Cho to Hogsmeade.

I interjected. "What if he doesn't want to ask her?" I would _not_ want to go out with a girl who cried when I kissed her.

"Don't be silly," Hermione said, as if I were a child. "Harry's liked her for ages, haven't you, Harry?" I was getting bored. I focused on the letter Hermione had been working on all night. It was trailing on the floor, covered in her small handwriting.

"Who're you writing the novel to anyway?" It was probably to her parents, filled with every little detail about how her school life is going. I thought I misheard when she answered, "Viktor."

"_Krum?_" No. Not that git. Why is it _always_ him? The perfect Quidditch star, sure, but too stupid to know when to back off. I went back to my Transfiguration essay, but I was finding hard to concentrate on anything besides what was in that letter. Did Hermione and Krum ever…? I ignored the thought when Hermione got up to go to bed. I packed up my books and followed Harry up the stairs.

"What does she see in Krum?" Maybe Harry would know something I don't.

"Well," he started, considering. "I s'pose he's older, isn't he… and he's an international Quidditch player…." Thanks, Harry, because I didn't already know that.

"Yeah, but apart from that… I mean he's a grouchy git, isn't he?" And ugly. Not to mention the fact that he can't even pronounce Hermione's name. How thick could you get? I said good night to Harry and went to bed, angry, not for the first time, at Viktor Krum.

* * *

_Wow, my third straight chapter of Ron's POV. I don't know why, but I find it so much more fun to write as him. Next chapter will be Hermione's POV! Promise!_


	10. Chapter 10

_**Hermione**_

"We'll be in the library, Harry," I told him as I saw Cho come up to talk to him. I grabbed Ron's arm, and half-dragged him down the hall.

"What'd you do that for?" Ron asked, sounding annoyed. "I wanted to hear what she had to say!"

"Ron! What Harry and Cho talk about is a private conversation between the two of them! If he wanted you to stay, he would have asked." Honestly, though, I kind of wanted to stay, too.

Ron and I walked in silence for a minute, before he asked, "Why are we going to the bloody library again? You already spend all of your free time there. Do you really want me to suffer as well?"

I stopped walking and turned to him. "Fine, Ron. You're so sick of going where I want to, why don't you just pick somewhere?" He just looked at me, like usual, confused. "Go on," I urged him. "Where do you want to go? Anywhere is fine with me."

He stood thinking for a few moments. I thought he was about to give in when suddenly he said, "Do you just want to walk? I mean, we never really walked around the castle before."

"Are you joking? We must have walked through every corridor in the castle at least a dozen times over the past five years!" I laughed, thinking of our adventures, but stopped when I saw Ron didn't look amused and his ears had turned pink.

"Well, I, erm," he cleared his throat and looked down at his feet. "What I meant was, that we, uh, never really took a walk around, you know, just you and me." He gave me a sheepish look.

I felt my cheeks get warm. Did he really mean he wanted to spend time with me? Just the two of us, no Harry or Ginny? I mentally shook my head. Of course he didn't mean that! He couldn't. He was just stating a fact, is all, and found it a bit awkward. But then, why should it be awkward? It's not like he was asking me out, or anything, he was just talking about a walk. There's nothing romantic about a walk. Well, I suppose that if you are walking somewhere like along a beach, then _that's_ romantic, but we're in _school_. There is no way there could be anything relating to romance in _school_!

"Hermione?" I glanced up, realizing I hadn't said anything in response to his idea. His ears had turned from pink to red. I smiled at him.

"A walk sounds lovely, Ron." And it did. He was kind of right, anyways, about spending all my time at the library. "Let's go this way," I said, motioning in the opposite direction. Even I could use a break from there, sometimes.

We just started when we saw Harry half-skipping down the corridor, a huge grin on his face. "I did it," he said, as soon as we were within earshot.

"You kissed Cho again?" Ron asked excitedly. I elbowed him lightly.

"Don't be such a pig! Did what, Harry?" I asked, turning to him.

His grin, if it were possible, grew a little bigger. "I asked her out. To Hogsmeade. On Valentine's Day. And I didn't even make an arse out of myself doing it!"

"Harry that's great!" I was about to tell him I was happy for him when Ron cut me off.

"So what happened, mate? You know Hermione made me leave, so we don't know anything! How did it come up? And what am _I_ supposed to do all day if _you _are out on a date?"

I walked alongside them, Ron and I on either side of Harry, and listened to the boys "talk strategy", or whatever it is they did. I was so happy for Harry, I truly was, but I was kind of disappointed that mine and Ron's non-romantic, as-friends walk never happened. I wondered if Ron felt the same way. I glanced over at him while Harry was chattering happily, and was surprised to see Ron giving me a searching, almost wistful look. He quickly turned his attention back to Harry as soon as our eyes met, and didn't look at me again.

I blocked out the rest of their conversation as I tried to fit together the puzzle that is Ronald Bilius Weasley. Honestly, he had seemed almost… _embarrassed_, when he was asking to go on a walk. I thought again of his eyes meeting mine, how the emotion in them was borderline longing, and wondered if it was just my mind making me see what I wanted to see. Then again, maybe the idea of Ron and I isn't as ridiculous as I had originally thought.


	11. Chapter 11

**_Hermione_**

Something happy… something _happy_… I got it! It was the last D.A. meeting before Christmas break, and Harry was finally teaching patronuses. Everyone seemed so excited, and I was right there with them.

It was my very first attempt at a Patronus charm, not including that time in third year. I concentrated on my first really happy memory; It was when Harry, Ron and I became friends in first year. Sure, the memories of the troll attack aren't too pleasant, but afterwards always put a smile on my face. Since that day, we became virtually inseparable. Oh, sure, there are fights here and there (mostly between Ron and I) but we really are the best of friends.

I focused on how delighted I had felt to finally have friends, and shouted "_Expecto Patronum!_" At once, a beautiful silver otter burst from my wand. I grinned, pleased with producing a Patronus on my first attempt, and looked around to see how the rest of the room was doing. Cho had also succeeded in her Patronus (a swan, of course) and I saw the vague shape of a dog form from Ron's wand. Others, like Lavender and Neville, were still having an awful lot of trouble.

"They _are_ sort of nice, aren't they?" I said, more to myself than those around me.

Suddenly, I was distracted by seeing a tower of my knitted elf hats float through the crowd. Everyone fell silent when they saw the terror on the elf's face, and I felt my Patronus disappear. Dobby started talking to Harry, and then tried to ram himself into the nearest wall.

After Harry grabbed Dobby to stop him from hurting himself, they were talking about Umbridge. When Harry asked Dobby if she was coming, the poor elf began to cry and shout yes. I felt myself frozen where I stood. I couldn't even move when Harry yelled to run. We were done for.

_**Ron**_

"WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? RUN!" Everyone around me started scrambling towards the exit as fast as they could. I started to run, too, until I noticed a solitary figure with bushy hair frozen to the spot.

"Hermione!" I called as loud as I could. She turned towards me, looking dazed. I doubled back and grabbed her wrist, pulling her along as I ran from the Room of Requirement. As soon as we got to the corridor, she seemed to come to and slowed. "What about Harry?" she cried.

I just shook my head and seized her hand. "There's no time! We've got to move! Harry'll be alright!" I tried not to wonder about the truth of my statement as I looked for somewhere to go, someplace to hide.

I heard feet running far behind us, but I didn't want to find out if they were friend or foe. With a stroke of luck, I spotted a secret passageway Fred and George had shown me in my fourth year. I quickly glanced around before pulling Hermione behind the hidden door and closing it swiftly behind me.

As we caught our breath, Hermione looked up at me. "How – how did you – find this place?"

"Fourth year, during the tournament. When, erm, Harry and I weren't talking, and I was hanging around with Fred and George." I grinned at her. "Guess they really are good for something, aren't they?"

"I guess so." We heard faint yells outside, and Hermione looked upset. "I can't believe she found us. And I just _stood there_! Everyone around me was running, but I just couldn't think. God, Ron, if it wasn't for you –"

I saw she was shaking, and put my arm around her. "It's okay, Mione. Do you really think I would have just left you there? You were terrified! I had to make sure nothing would happen to you." I suddenly stopped, afraid I'd said too much, but Hermione didn't seem to notice. She just leaned her head against my chest, being too short to reach my shoulder, but I didn't mind.

In a wave of bravery, I put my other arm around her and pulled her into a hug, smiling when she wrapped her arms around my waist. We stayed like that for a few seconds, until I felt her stop shaking.

"C'mon," I said, gently breaking out of the embrace. "We should get moving. I think this gets out somewhere on second floor…" We walked quickly through the passage, me constantly turning around to make sure Hermione was keeping up. As we started up the stairs, we went as quietly as we could, careful not to attract attention.

We arrived at the common room and was greeted by the other Gryffindors who had escaped Umbridge's wrath. After about ten minutes of sharing stories (Colin and Dennis Creevey were telling anyone who would listen about their supposed takedown of Goyle) George asked me where Harry was.

"Honestly, I don't know. I had hoped he made it back here," I told him, with others' worried faces looking on. We sat around speaking quietly, all of us too scared to go to bed. And as for Harry, there was nothing else for us to do but wait and hope he was okay.

* * *

_This chapter basically came about because I always wondered what happened to Ron and Hermione while Harry was getting captured._

_Also, I just wanted to thank all of my readers for the positive feedback. Every review makes my day, and I love that you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoy writing it. Another chapter is coming soon!_


	12. Chapter 12

___This is a totally original scene that I just decided to add into the story. After Fred and George made their escape from Hogwarts, Ron had to have been feeling down about all his brothers have accomplished and how much he has to live up to. Naturally, his best friends are there to make it better.**

* * *

**_

_**Hermione**_

"I wish somebody else had the skill to let off a load of fireworks. D'you reckon I'd be able to sneak in a few Filibuster's?"

As we got out of our classes for lunch, I heard a group of third years referencing "The Great Twins", Fred and George. Things have been completely mad ever since they made their grand exit from the school, though I have to admit I was rather impressed by their nerve.

Between the swamp, nifflers, and, most notably, Peeves, you could hear praises to their handiwork wherever you were in the castle. Other students, younger ones especially, would even praise Ron and Ginny for "having the coolest brothers in the history of the world".

At first, it was amusing to all of us how the younger years hero-worshipped Fred and George. But after a week of this, I started noticing how strained Ron's smile became, and how he looked more and more upset each time he heard his brothers' names. Even now, as we sat down for lunch, Ron was looking depressed.

Apparently, I wasn't the only one who noticed, as Harry suddenly said next to me, "What's the matter, Ron? You're hardly touching your food."

Ron just looked away and grumbled, "It's nothing, don't worry about it. I'm fine."

"Ron," I leaned in across the table towards him. I didn't want half the table listening in. "Please talk to us. What's been going on? You've seemed sadder and sadder ever since Fred and George – "

"But that's just it, isn't it?" He interrupted. He whipped back around in his seat and looking at Harry and I with a silent plea in his eyes. "Ever since they left, everyone's been talking about how great they are, how talented, how brilliant. Even the teachers are in full support of them! Peeves is taking orders from them! I don't think he's ever listened to anyone besides Dumbledore in his entire existence! They're going to be a legacy, I heard Alicia Spinnet say. Everyone is going to remember who they are and what they did at this school, just like every one of my stupid brothers!"

He stopped and glared at the few Gryffindors around us who had looked around curiously at his outburst. After they turned around, he looked back at me. "Mione, you want to know what's been going on? It's that every single one of my brothers has been great at something, and people will remember them for it. Bill was Head Boy, but he was also the coolest bloke in his year. Charlie was amazing with Care of Magical Creatures, and was a good Quidditch player. Perfect Percy had excellent grades, was a prefect, _and_ Head Boy. And now this with Fred and George. No matter what I do, one of my brothers has already done it and did it better! I get decent grades, sure, but not great. Yeah, maybe I'm a prefect, but that's been done twice. Okay, I'm Gryffindor Keeper. But I'm a bloody awful one at that, we all know it. No," He said when Harry was about to disagree. "Let me finish. My whole life I've been living in my older brothers' shadows, looking up to them, wanting to be like them. I just haven't realized until now that that is all I will ever amount to, trying to live up to them. The kicker is, Ginny won't even have that problem, because _she's_ the girl! People view her differently; they aren't always comparing her to us. And they actually know _her_ name; they don't see her as 'the other Weasley brother' or 'Harry Potter's friend'."

He sighed as he looked down the table where Ginny was laughing with some of her friends. I felt my heart break for him. Who knew he'd been carrying this weight around with him his whole life? Maybe he had more of an emotional range than I realized.

"Ron, all those things may be true –" He looked away as soon as I said this. "Ronald Bilius Weasley, listen to me, dammit!" He turned back, a little shocked, so I took a breath and continued. "All those things about your brothers and Ginny may be true, but not about you. You forgot about some of you're most important qualities."

"Oh yeah?" he asked halfheartedly. "Like what?"

It was Harry who started. "Like your loyalty. We may argue sometimes, hell, you and Hermione never seem to stop," he smiled jokingly, earning a weak smile from Ron in return. "But no matter what, Ron, I know there's nothing you wouldn't do for us. And then there's your humor. You always find a way to make me laugh when I need it."

"And me as well," I broke in. "You also failed to mention your bravery. I lose track of the number of times you have defended Harry and I, regardless of the consequences. Just think of the time you tried cursing Malfoy and ended up belching slugs –"

"Oh, yeah, that was really a great moment for me. Screwing up a spell and looking like a fool."

"The point WAS, that you did it for me. You didn't care what happened to you, all you cared about was that Malfoy called me a Mudblood, and you were going to make him pay. Even if it kind of backfired," I smiled at him. "I saw your intentions, and it was very sweet. That's another quality." He looked at me for a long moment, and I started to feel awkward. Thankfully, Harry caught my mood and jumped in.

"So you see, Ron, that there are a lot of great things about you. You're my best mate, and you always will be. Even if you are a bit stupid sometimes, like when you think your brothers are better than you." He grinned at Ron, who quickly grinned back.

"Oh, shove it, Harry. You're not exactly a genius yourself." He looked at me. "Thanks, Mione, Harry."

Before he could say anymore, a first year ran up to him and asked excitedly if Ron could get Fred's and George's autographs. Ron rolled his eyes and grinned at Harry and I. "Sure, kid, but it'll cost you ten Galleons." I smiled to myself; Ron was back.

* * *

_So, despite the fact that all seven books are from Harry's point of view, I just can't seem to write him as well as Ron and Hermione. As always, reviews are very much enjoyed!_


	13. Chapter 13

_**Hermione**_

I couldn't help myself. I started to cry. Harry and I were walking back to the Quidditch match after finding out about Hagrid's little brother. Little! That's a joke! There is no way that Umbridge won't find out about Grawp and kick Hagrid out for it. And I told Harry as much, but he just glared.

"You didn't mean that," Harry whispered. He was right; I didn't mean it. But it was a huge fear of mine, the idea of Hagrid being chucked out and us having to care for that _thing_ as well! And now that we were within range, I could vaguely hear the tune of 'Weasley Is Our King'.

"And I wish they'd stop singing that stupid song! Haven't they gloated enough?" Just one more thing to add to the list. Ron already had awful self-esteem, but if he screws up this match (which it sounded like he was) it could destroy him. It just made me more upset for him, for Harry and me, and for all of Gryffindor. I got a flash of how he would look once he was defeated, broken. My heart ached for him. "Oh, let's get in before we have to meet the Slytherins."

The song got louder as we got closer, and I could hear the words. Something was off about it. Did the Slytherins come up with a new verse? But it wasn't until Harry said my name that I noticed what group of students the song swelled from. Immediately, something in my mind cleared and I heard the difference in the lyrics.

_Weasley is our King,_

_Weasley is our King,_

_He didn't let the Quaffle in,_

_Weasley is our King…_

"No," I said with disbelief. I saw Ron being carried in by a horde of Gryffindors, all of whom were cheering loudly. He carried the Quidditch Cup and wore the biggest smile I've seen on him in a long time.

"YES!" Harry said, lighting up with excitement.

"HARRY! HERMIONE!" I looked up as he spotted us. His smile grew even wider, and I felt myself beaming in return. "WE DID IT! WE WON!"

I winced as he hit his head while being carried into the castle, but he didn't seem to care. Harry turned to me with a grin. "We'll save our news till tomorrow, shall we?"

I was only too happy to oblige. "Yes, all right. I'm not in any hurry." I was exhausted; it had been a crazy day. Harry and I started back to what we knew was a celebration in the common room. I would have to act very awake for a little while, but I could handle it. I thought of Ron's triumphant smile and found that his happiness and confidence was reason enough to celebrate for an hour or two.

~*~*~

**_Ron_**

"What? Why are you grinning?" I had just finished recounting the finer details of the match to my best friends, and there was Harry smiling like a madman.

"I'm not," he quickly said, looking away. "I'm just glad we won, that's all."

I beamed. "Yeah, _we won_." I still couldn't believe it. Gryffindor actually won the Quidditch Cup, and that was without Harry! I never thought my position as a Keeper was as important as the others on the team. Obviously, the Seeker has the most important job, but after that it's the Chasers who are the most valuable. But from everybody's reactions last night, I supposed I must be more important than I thought. I wondered vaguely if Wood had ever received that kind of recognition, before waving the thought away.

"Did you see the look on Chang's face when Ginny got the Snitch right out from under her nose?"

Harry looked sour. "I supposed she cried, did she?"

"Well, yeah – more out of temper than anything, though…" But wait, Harry should have known that, shouldn't he? I frowned. Maybe he just wasn't paying attention to the human hosepipe because he was so happy for us. "But you saw her chuck her broom away when she got back to the ground, didn't you?" I mean, how could he have missed that one? She sure made enough of a drama out of it. But Harry and Hermione exchanged a look.

Hermione looked at me. Was that pity in her eyes? "Well, actually… no, Ron. As a matter of fact, the only bit of the match Harry and I saw was Davies's first goal."

I felt as though the wind had been knocked out of me. Here we were, talking about one of the best days of my life, and now I find out my so-called best friends didn't even stick around long enough to witness?

"You didn't watch?" I was quiet, hating to confirm what they said. "You didn't see me make any of those saves?"

"Well – no," Hermione placed her hand on my arm, but I shook it off. "But Ron, we didn't want to leave – we had to!" Yeah, right.

"Yeah? How come?" I couldn't believe they had abandoned me. I knew how much Hermione hated Quidditch, but it still hurt a surprising amount to know she didn't support me. And Harry, my best friend who lives for the sport, couldn't be bothered to watch me play.

"It was Hagrid," started Harry. And just like that, they told me the whole story of Grawp, then Centaurs, and Hagrid's plea.

I have to say I was relieved. Could you imagine the feeling of total abandonment that comes from the knowledge that your best friends don't care about what you do? It's nice to know that they didn't leave voluntarily, but because the issue of a giant made them. If it was anything less than that, I would probably have still been mad. But I guess I could let it slide this time, as long as they promise to never miss another Quidditch match again. That is, if I make the team again next year.

* * *

_Hey all! I just wanted to let you know that we're getting down to the end here. I have three more chapters planned, but I might add more depending on how inspired I feel while writing. I want to thank all of you for the reviews and adding this to your favorites, but especially for just reading. Even if reviewing isn't your thing (which I completely understand) it's great that I have so much support here. I will post chapter 14 soon!_


	14. Chapter 14

_**Ron**_

"Well, well, well! Little Miss Question-All is going to give us some answers! Come on then, girl, come on!"

This was it. It was the end for all of us. We were all going to get expelled, and that was only the best-case scenario! Hermione had broken down, and she was going to tell Umbridge everything. I could hardly believe that after all we've gone through, she was willing to make it meaningless. I struggled against Warrington, the bloke gagging me.

"Er – my – nee – no!" I managed to choke out. I felt betrayed. How could she do this to us? To Harry, to me? I felt anger as I thought Harry's name. This is all because of some stupid dream he had! How do we know what he saw was even real, anyway?

Hermione was sobbing. "I'm – I'm sorry everyone. But – I can't stand it!" The stupid toad grabbed her and shoved her into a chair, and I momentarily allowed my hurt to change to rage at Umbridge. But, only shock was there when I heard Hermione's next words.

"…He was _trying_ to speak to Professor Dumbledore."

Dumbledore? What was Hermione doing? I then realized that she _wasn't _about to sell us all out. Of course she wouldn't throw all her work away! I silently applauded her on her ability to pull a story like that out of nowhere, but I tried not to let it show. I listened like everyone else to hear the story Hermione was obviously (to us) making up as she went along.

"We… we wanted to tell him it's r-ready!"

"What's ready? What's ready, girl?" The old toad grabbed her again. I almost missed Hermione's answer because I was considering trying to break free again.

"The… the weapon." I couldn't help but be proud of her strategy. That will definitely keep Umbridge preoccupied. After all, isn't that why she was so terrified of Dumbledore's Army?

"What kind of weapon is it?" Oh, she had fear written all over her face. For every bit her frown deepened, my mental grin widened just a little bit more.

Hermione exaggerated a sniffle. "We don't r-r-really understand it. We j-just did what P-P-Professor Dumbledore told us t-t-to do."

"Lead me to the weapon."

Hermione looked terrified. Of course, that was probably fear of getting caught in her lie, and for good reason, considering that she is a bloody awful liar. "I'm not showing… _them_."

"It is not for you to set conditions!"

"Fine. Fine… let them see it, I hope they use it on you! In fact, I wish you'd invite loads and loads of people to come and see! Th-that would serve you right – oh, I'd love it if the wh-whole school knew where it was and how to u-use it, and then if you annoy any of them they'll be able to s-sort you out!"

I could tell that Hermione wasn't lying about that, and I couldn't blame her. The way she went on, she had me wishing that there really _was_ a weapon like the one she described.

"All right, dear, let's make it just you and me…" she glanced at Harry. "and we'll take Potter too, shall we? Get up, now –"

As soon as Harry and Hermione left with that stupid witch, I exchanged glances with Ginny, Neville, and Luna. One way or another, I swore we were getting out of there. I just hoped they understood my looks.

Malfoy stood up and tried to take charge. "Well, I hope you filthy blood traitors are nice and comfortable. You're going to be stuck here until Professor Umbridge returns with Potty and the Mudblood."

"Don't call her that!" I managed to yell before I was gagged again. Malfoy snickered.

"Got a problem with me insulting your girlfriend, Weasley? I can see it now, a blood traitor and a Mudblood, the perfect filthy family." The other Slytherins laughed at the joke, and I felt the blood rushing to my face.

"Better them than a slimeball like you, Malfoy!" Ginny was quickly silenced by the ugly Slytherin holding her. Her ears were bright red, and I was willing to bet mine were just as bad. Neville was still attempting to fight off Crabbe, who was grinning.

Luna, I noticed, had stopped struggling and was staring at me intently. When I caught her eye, she nodded slightly downwards. I followed her gaze and noticed Warrington's wand sticking out of his pocket, easily within my reach. Luna, too, was inching her hand toward her captor's pocket, where both her and the Slytherin's wand resided. I almost laughed out loud at the stupidity of my classmates.

I looked up, and noticed Ginny was also watching us, trying to understand where we were going. I silently signaled to Luna when it was time for our attack. We brandished the wands and simultaneously yelled, "_Stupefy_!" Warrington fell, releasing me, and I heard Luna yell the spell again, releasing Ginny.

I quickly stunned Crabbe, and noticed various scraps around me as I found mine, Harry's and Hermione's wand. I heard Neville shout, "_Impedimenta!_" and heard a loud thud. When I stood up, Malfoy was running around the office after being hit with Ginny's Bat-Bogey Hex, and Goyle was lying at Neville's feet.

I was seriously impressed. "Let's get out of here!" I shouted over the noise. I ran out the door, closely followed by Luna, Neville, and Ginny. We ran as fast as we could, and didn't slow down until we hit the castle grounds.

As we caught our breath, we beamed at each other. "That was brilliant!" Neville gasped, and I couldn't help but agree. Luna and I congratulated each other on our escape plan, while Ginny just grinned triumphantly.

"Come on, guys," she said after a minute or two. "We need to go find Harry and Hermione. Sirius is still in trouble! We have to help."

We started running towards the forest. Still being high on adrenaline, I smirked. It was time to go save the world, again.

* * *

_So, I completely made up the second half of the chapter. I hope I did it justice! Let me know what you think!_

_Also, we are getting close to the end here. I'm not completely sure how many more chapters I'm going to do, but I'm thinking it will be about three more. One of them for sure will be set after the book ends, and we may even throw in different POVs! Thanks to everyone for being so supportive!_


	15. Chapter 15

_**Neville**_

It was finally over.

Here we were in the Hospital Wing, safe and sound at Hogwarts. Harry, Luna, Ginny and I were all scattered around Hermione's and Ron's beds, talking animatedly. The battle at the Ministry was long over, and we all survived it.

Honestly, I was scared out of my mind. I didn't think I'd make it, you see. I could just hear my Gran in the back of my head, _'Come on, Neville! Man up and be brave like that Harry Potter!_' So I did. And I'd say I did pretty damn well, too. We all did.

"So has all the trouble stopped now Dumbledore's back?" Hermione's question brought me back to the conversation.

"Yes, everything's settled right back down again." I was only too happy to be included in the discussion. Ever feel like you don't belong with your friends? That's me, all the time. The only one I can relate to most here is Luna, and she's bonkers!

Ron was happily devouring his pile Chocolate Frogs. "I s'pose Filch is happy, is he?"

"Not at all. He's really, really miserable, actually," Ginny looked around and whispered, so we all had to lean in to hear her. "He keeps saying Umbridge was the best thing that ever happened to Hogwarts."

We all looked at the pathetic excuse for a professor. She was just lying there on her bed, staring off into space. Dumbledore, of course, rescued her with no problem. Personally, I probably would have let her stay in the centaurs' clutches. But maybe that's because I would be too scared to face those creatures myself.

"Madame Pomfrey says she's just in shock."

"Sulking, more like."

"Yeah, she shows signs of life if you do this," Ron clicked his tongue to sound like horse hooves. Umbridge immediately sat up and started looking around wildly.

While the others laughed at her craziness, I felt a strange sadness fill me as I thought of my parents. I don't know why Umbridge reminded me of them, because they are nothing alike, I promise. Maybe it's just because I've spent more time around crazy people than most my age, and I can sympathize whenever someone acts a little out-of-their-mind, especially when it's something they can't control.

The others were discussing Firenze when I drifted back in. "It looks like he and Trelawney are both going to teach," Ginny was saying.

Ron continued to gulp down his candy. He never really seemed to stop eating, actually. It was probably because he was so tall and athletic. I wish I could be more like him sometimes, but hey, story of my life. "Bet Dumbledore wishes he could have gotten rid of Trelawney for good. Mind you, the whole subject's useless if you ask me, Firenze isn't a lot better…"

"How can you say that? After we've just found out that there are real prophecies?" It was well known that Hermione and Divination didn't mix, but since she learned that there was some store set in the practice, she was fascinated. But that's Hermione for you: she will always find a way to learn something, even if it is about a subject she hates. That's why she's so brilliant, and probably why she always thinks she's right.

Don't get me wrong; Hermione is right ninety-nine percent of the time. It's just that, sometimes, I don't blame Ron for starting arguments. But then, I think he just does it because he likes it, as well as Hermione. They love getting in each other's faces, but they would never admit to it, because that would mean they admit their feelings for each other. They bury it down and try to hide it with anger, but they care for each other a lot. I may just be the useless one of the group, but I'm not stupid; they aren't fooling any of us. I'm just waiting for when they put their pride out of the way and become the world's next power couple.

Of course, that will happen about as soon as Luna stops believing in nargles. She's told me all about her theories of her favorite creatures. Half of them I don't think really exist, but I still like talking to her. For all of Luna's ridiculous ideas, she is one of the most creative souls I have ever met, and I understand completely why she's a Ravenclaw. I envy her sometimes, not just for her originality, but also for her complete disregard for what people think of her. I wish I worried about that less.

I heard Harry excusing himself, and decided it was time for me to go as well. I said goodbye to the rest of the group, and made my way up to my dormitory. I was alone with my thoughts, unless you counted my _Mimbulus mimbletonia_.

I thought about my friends and how I came to know them. Even back in my first year, I felt like Harry, Ron and Hermione always accepted me for who I was. We weren't good friends, but hey, Ron couldn't stand Hermione at first, and now look at them. I wonder if he liked her even then, and that is why he always made fun of her.

My thoughts moved on to my younger friends, Ginny and Luna. I took Ginny to the Yule Ball, but I think she just went with me because she really wanted to go. We still managed to become friends somehow, which was surprising because she seemed like she could be popular. She was pretty, funny and very witty. Of course, you just would never want to get her mad. I saw that Bat-Bogey Hex she set on Malfoy, and let me tell you, it does not look fun.

When Ginny first had us sit down with Luna, I was worried. I'd heard stories about "Loony" Lovegood, so I didn't know what to expect. I never would have guessed she would become someone I trusted most. Everything about her is so unique, and I would never want to trade her or any of the others.

And that's my life for you. Just an ordinary wizard, surrounded by the influential and the beautiful, with little hope of measuring up to them. Despite my lack of natural abilities, though, I know that no one will try as hard as me. I started to prove my worth at the Ministry of Magic, but I have quite a ways to go until I can be honestly compared to the strengths in my life: strong Ron, brilliant Hermione, powerful Ginny, artistic Luna, the Great Harry Potter, or my brave parents. But someday, I will make them all proud.

* * *

_Surprised? I was, too. I just thought that we should change up the story a little by making this from a different point of view. As you could probably tell, this was less about Ron and Hermione and more about just Neville's thoughts, but I worked them in as best as I could. This chapter was pretty difficult for me, especially since we don't know that much about Neville's character. I like to think I did pretty well with him, though. Let me know what you think! Another chapter will be coming soon!_


	16. Chapter 16

_So I FINALLY updated this. Sorry it took so long, I have been SUPER busy. Also, some parts of this may not sound like Ron, and if it doesn't I'm sorry! I really tried to stay in character as much as possible, but it's a lot harder when I don't use actual lines from the book. Anyways, I hope you enjoy it!

* * *

_

_**Ron**_

"You know we have to talk to him." Hermione's voice, even quiet as it was, cut across the Hospital Wing. Harry just left to go visit Hagrid, or ran away, I should say. Ginny, Neville and Luna all followed a minute later. I think Harry's quick departure made them feel awkward.

I quickly looked to see if Umbridge was listening to our conversation, but the old toad seemed just as zoned out as ever. I looked over at Hermione's bed. "Hermione, what do you expect to say? 'Sorry, Harry, I know the only father figure you've ever had just died, but we want you to relive it so we can heal you'? It just doesn't sound like a good plan to me."

"But, Ron, you know how Harry gets when he's on his own for too long. He starts thinking that his life is too dangerous, and then he tries to block us out. We can't let that happen again!" Hermione was earnest, blinking back the tears I saw forming in her eyes.

_Oh, no_. I hated it when girls cried, especially when it was Hermione. I've seen her cry a few times since we've been in the Hospital Wing. The whole fight down there seemed to make her over-emotional, and I think she had nightmares.

The first time it happened, I'll admit I freaked out. I tried to get up and hug her, because I think sometimes crying girls just need a hug for some reason, but that didn't work very well for us. We were both in too much pain from our respective injuries. She and I settled on just holding onto each other's hands and talking until one of us fell asleep. It wasn't anything romantic, more about having someone there to listen, but we never held hands in front of the others. I could only imagine the look on Ginny's face if she saw us! And she would be completely wrong, of course.

Now, I wanted to reassure Hermione that Harry would be okay, and that he would talk to us when he was ready, but I wasn't sure that would happen. Like Hermione said, he tends to think he's alone, or should be.

Instead, I just reached out for Hermione's hand. She immediately grasped it, and I told her, "It's too early to bring it up. He's upset, and although he obviously tries to hide it, you and I know better. So I will tell you what: we are going to wait until Harry is ready, and then we will talk about Sirius. And in the meantime, if he says anything about being on his own, or dangerous missions, or how we should stay away, I will tie him to a chair while you lecture him on the importance of his friends."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Why do I get the boring lecturing job? Who do you think I am, Professor Binns?"

"Well, you do tend to drone on and on…" I smirked at her.

"Hey!" She lightly smacked my arm, then returned her hand to mine and smiled. "Thanks, Ron. It really helps me knowing that we can talk about this. As horrible as the contributing experiences were, I'm glad you and I ended up here. It's nice, having someone just to listen and understand."

I felt my ears redden at the compliment, but I ignored it and looked up at the ceiling. "That's what best friends are for, right?" There was so much more I suddenly had the impulse to say, but in some rare moment of self-control, I stopped myself.

Could I really tell her that, no matter how much we argued, I would be there for her as long as she wanted me to? What if she _didn't_ want me there, and the only reason she isn't objecting now is because I'm the only one here? I was sure that she would much rather have an emotional breakdown in front of Ginny, who would actually know how to comfort her.

But then, Hermione started speaking, and my internal rambling was cut off. "Yeah, that's what best friends are for. And, Ron?" I looked over at her, even though she already had my full attention. "I'm really grateful that you and Harry are my best friends. Remember back in First Year, when I heard you making fun of me and I locked myself in the loo?"

That wasn't one of my finer moments, being enough of a git to make a girl cry, but I nodded anyways. "Yeah, and that stupid troll found you and Harry and I had to fight it off." Hermione rolled her eyes, but smiled softly.

"When I think about that day now, Ron, I'm actually glad you called me a 'nightmare' because I know that if you hadn't, then you, me, and Harry never would have become best friends. You two mean more to me than anything, and I can't imagine what I would have done all these years if I hadn't had you."

"You'd be a lot more boring, I'm sure," I tell her, but I turn my face to the ceiling again because I'll be damned if I let her see the tears her words caused. I heard her chuckle, and I squeezed her hand to let her know that I felt the same way.

Hermione and I talked for the rest of the night, always changing the subject if something became too emotional. When Madame Pomfrey came for her nightly rounds, she sternly and not-too-politely told us to shut it and go to bed before stalking off to her office.

I took Hermione's hand again and whispered good night, wondering again what we could do about Harry. I fell asleep thinking that I could deal with him as long as Hermione was with me. After all, my friends were the special ones, and I could do anything as long as I was with them.


	17. Chapter 17

_So this is it, everyone. Thanks so much to all of my readers who stuck with me through this story. I am so grateful for every review, favorite, story alert, and even just people who took the time to read this! I hope you all found this to be as fun to read as I thought it was to write._

_I know this chapter's short, but I thought it would be best. Without further ado, I present the final chapter of Phoenix Reflections (that sounded much more formal than I intended to make it) Enjoy!_

* * *

_**Ginny**_

"I – er- heard she's going out with someone else now," I drifted back into reality and could only assume Hermione was talking about Cho. Of course, _I_ already knew the whole story, but I suppose the boys would need to know at some point.

Ron looked at Harry supportively. "You're well out of it, mate. I mean, she's quite good-looking and all that, but you want someone a bit more cheerful."

Harry just shrugged. "She's probably cheerful enough with someone else." Yeah, she sure is.

Ron asked Hermione who Cho was dating now, but I answered him before she could even open her mouth. "Michael Corner." Ron's jaw dropped as he turned to look at me.

"Michael – but – but you were going out with him!"

I rolled my eyes. "Not anymore. He didn't like Gryffindor beating Ravenclaw at Quidditch and got really sulky, so I ditched him and he ran off to comfort Cho instead." The idiot. I mean, how could I possibly date someone who gets all whiny because my house beat his? At least I won't have to worry about that with Dean.

Ron looked oddly pleased as he continued his chess game. "Well, I always thought he was a bit of an idiot. Good for you. Just choose someone – better – next time."

Please, as if I didn't notice the looks he was sending towards Harry? Attention, big brother, that ship has sailed. Even if I would still seriously consider Harry (and I know better than that now), there's still no possibility that he would choose me.

"Well, I've chosen Dean Thomas, would you say he's better?" There, Ronnie. See what you make of _that_.

"WHAT?" He shouted and looked outraged, which is pretty much what I expected. I shook my head at him as he stuttered, "But – you – and the – why – Dean?"

Hermione sent me a pitying look, as if apologizing for his existence. "Ron, calm down. This is a good thing! You know Dean, you like him; he's a Gryffindor for pity's sake! What more could you want? Not to mention you share a room with him, so you'll always be able to keep an eye on him… not that it's necessary," she added, catching my eye.

Ron just sent me a withering look, then looked at Hermione and sighed in defeat. I admit I was really impressed. It normally takes much more than that to calm him down, but then, this _is _Hermione we're talking about. I bet she could pretty much make him do whatever she wanted, not that she realizes it.

I catch Harry's eye and we share a look. See, this is where it gets difficult for the bystanders like us, because we just _know_ that Ron and Hermione are into each other. No one fights _that_ much in the real world. They somehow rationalize it in their minds because they just love talking to each other so much, that they don't care how it happens.

Of course, those two are just so pigheaded that they'll never realize their feelings on their own. They'd probably need the end of the freaking world to admit it to themselves, let alone each other.

This is where I come in, as the little sister and supportive friend. I get to work on Hermione all year in the girl's dormitories, dropping little hints and trying to make her confess _something_. But no, she chooses to misunderstand anything involving Ron and feelings.

Ron, on the other hand, seems to realize he feels something, but he spends so much time suppressing it that he probably can't make heads or tails of what it is. He's so emotionally constipated that it just seems to make him dumber. I spend all summer poking and prodding him in Hermione's direction, and he is oblivious to it all!

Hermione and Ron can fool themselves, but they can't fool me. Even Harry likes to pretend that he isn't aware of what's going on between his two best friends, or maybe he just doesn't fully realize it yet. But I do.

For example, all of the bullshit last year between Ron and Hermione over Viktor Krum speaks volumes. Oh, Ron claims he "bloody well was not jealous of that ugly git!" and he was "just concerned for Hermione's sake". Ignoring and yelling at Hermione, and just being an arse in general, was _not_ the best course of action to prove his "concern". To be fair, though, I really think _he_ believed that he wasn't jealous of Viktor, even though it was obvious that he was. Who knows? If the tables were turned, maybe Hermione would be the same way.

You look at any time they're arguing, and you get the idea. Even better, see how they act around each other when they're _not_ fighting. I notice the little looks they send when the other isn't paying attention. I can see how embarrassed they get at the thought of the other as a member of the opposite sex. Like that time Lavender mentioned how cute Ron was getting: Hermione started stuttering and rushed off to bed.

Or, when Fred and George purposely let Ron overhear their "private" conversation about how Hermione was maturing into her, ahem, _assets_. Ron turned bright red and ran out of that room faster than you could _say _'assets'. Of course, I was right in the room as well, where Ron couldn't spot me, and Fred, George and I had a good laugh about it afterwards.

Joking aside, I'll be damned if I watch them dance around each other for the rest of their lives. Who knows? Maybe the end of the world will come early. They so _obviously_ love each other. Idiots.

_**The End.**_


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